Zero Contentment

Crash Landing

Naomi's POV

The shuttle screamed, and I screamed right back.

“Come on, come on, COME ON...!! Don’t you dare die on me now!”

The controls were dead in my hands. There was no thrust and no navigation, only a damaged shuttle falling rapidly toward a planet that was getting closer with every second. The autopilot had failed five minutes earlier, the fuel line was ruptured, and the left engine was badly damaged and smoking.

And the baby wouldn't stop kicking.

"You're going to kill us both!" I yelled at my belly, as if the child inside me could hear. "Please stop moving and let me focus!"

Another kick came, sharp and strong, almost as if it were answering me.

I pulled the yoke back with every bit of strength I had. The shuttle groaned as the nose lifted slightly, but we were still coming in far too fast. Trees rushed past the viewport, followed by mountains and a wide stretch of water. Everything was happening too quickly.

"Brace yourself," I whispered. "I don't know if this is going to work."

I had no other choice. I aimed for the clearing marked on Mark's coordinates, the one located only two kilometers from my father's safe house. I had to make it there. I had to survive.

The shuttle clipped the first treetop. The impact shattered the remaining glass and sent a violent vibration through the entire shuttle. My body was thrown against the harness, my head snapping forward as my vision briefly disappeared into a bright blur.

The baby kicked again, harder than before, and for one terrifying moment I felt something strange through our connection.

Fear. Panic. A desperate need to survive.

"I'm sorry," I whispered. "I'm so sorry."

The shuttle crashed through the forest like a wounded animal. Branches struck the hull, the landing gear broke away, and the entire vehicle began spinning out of control. I squeezed my eyes shut and prayed to a God I hadn't believed in since I was twelve.

Please, let me live. Let my baby live. I'll do anything.

The final impact came with terrifying force. Metal bent, glass shattered, and the shuttle rolled violently as I was thrown against the restraints. The harness finally broke, sending me against the console before I landed hard on the floor. Pain spread through my ribs, shoulder, and leg, making it difficult to breathe.

Then everything went silent.

---

I woke up to smoke.

Thick smoke filled the damaged cabin, making every breath difficult. I coughed and felt something warm run down my chin. When I touched it, I saw blood on my fingers.

Of course.

I tried to move, but pain immediately spread through my entire body. My ribs hurt, my shoulder throbbed, and my left leg felt weak.

But I was alive.

The shuttle had landed on its side. The viewport was gone, leaving a wide opening through which I could see the clear blue sky, green trees, and grass outside.

I had made it. Somehow, I had actually made it.

Move, Naomi. Move before the shuttle explodes.

I unbuckled what was left of the harness and crawled through the wreckage. Glass scratched my palms, and pieces of metal caught against my clothes as I dragged myself toward the opening. Finally, I pulled myself out of the shuttle and collapsed onto the grass.

I lay there gasping for air, trembling as tears filled my eyes. Then I placed both hands over my belly.

"Are you okay?" My voice was weak and hoarse. "Please, just be okay."

The baby kicked softly.

I'm here.

Relief washed over me, and I let out a shaky breath. For a few moments, I simply lay there, exhausted and injured but still breathing. Behind me, the shuttle continued to smoke, while somewhere in the distance, birds sang among the trees. For the first time in what felt like forever, everything seemed peaceful.

Almost peaceful.

Then I heard footsteps.

I quickly tried to sit up, but pain shot through my ribs and forced me back down. My hand immediately went to my waistband. The sidearm was still there. I pulled it out and aimed it toward the figure emerging from the trees.

The man stopped.

He was tall and broad-shouldered, with short silver hair and a face that looked like it had carried years of war and grief. He wore simple civilian clothes, including a worn jacket and a pair of heavy boots, but there was something about the way he stood that told me he had spent most of his life as a soldier.

He stared at me. I stared back. My hand trembled around the weapon.

"Naomi?"

His voice cracked slightly as he said my name. Then he started running toward me. He dropped to his knees beside me, his hands hovering over my injured body as though he was afraid that touching me might somehow make things worse.

Darrell Carter. My father.

"I've got you," he said, his voice shaking. "I've got you. You're okay. You're going to be okay."

The retired general who had faced alien fleets and insurgent armies was trembling as he looked at his injured daughter.

I lowered the weapon. Then I fell into his arms.

"Dad."

I started crying, and this time I couldn't stop. The tears came quickly as I held onto his jacket.

"I didn't know where else to go," I managed to say. "They were going to, Vivian, she wanted to—"

"Shh."

He held me tighter.

"I know. Mark called me. I know everything."

He pulled back just enough to look at me. His eyes moved over my face, my injured hands, and my torn clothes before finally stopping at my belly. The small but unmistakable swell beneath my jacket was impossible to hide.

His expression barely changed, because he had spent years learning how to control his emotions. But I saw it. The pain. The confusion. The question.

"Dad—"

"Later," he said gently. "Right now, we have to move. They'll track the crash, and we may have only a few minutes before they get here."

He helped me stand. My injured leg protested immediately, and pain spread through my ribs, but I forced myself to stay upright. I wrapped one arm around his shoulder while he supported most of my weight.

"Can you walk?" he asked.

"Can I fly a crashing shuttle?" I managed a weak laugh. "I can do anything."

A faint smile appeared on his face. Then we started moving through the forest.

We walked slowly, stumbling over roots and uneven ground as the trees blurred around me. My vision came and went, but my father's arm remained steady around me. His voice stayed calm. And somewhere inside me, the baby kicked softly.

We're safe. We're safe. We're safe.

The safe house finally appeared through the trees. It looked like a simple cabin from the outside, but its concrete walls and reinforced doors made it much stronger than it appeared. Most of it was hidden underground, making it difficult for satellites to detect. It wasn't anything special.

But to me, it looked like a palace.

Darrell helped me inside and lowered me onto an old couch before immediately getting to work. He brought out a medical kit, water, and bandages, his movements calm and practiced, just as they would have been after years of treating wounded soldiers. He had saved lives before. He had lost people before. And now he was doing everything he could to save his daughter.

I watched him work, noticing how tightly he held his jaw and how steady his hands remained even though his eyes revealed how frightened he really was.

"Dad," I said softly.

He looked up.

"I'm pregnant."

The words came out almost like a confession.

"It's not... it's not human. They did something to me. Vivian, Project Chimera, they—"

"I know."

His voice was calm and controlled.

"Mark told me everything."

I stared at him.

"Everything?"

"He told me it's the alien's child." He continued wrapping the bandage around my arm without looking away from his work. "He told me the military wants the baby, and he told me you're fighting back."

I swallowed.

"You're not angry?"

Darrell stopped. He placed the bandages down and looked directly at me. His eyes had seen wars, betrayal, and too many funerals, but there was something different in them now.

"Angry?"

He gave a short, bitter laugh.

"Naomi, I'm terrified. I'm furious at the people who did this to you, and I'm heartbroken that you had to go through it alone, but I'm not angry at you."

He reached out and took my hand.

"You are my daughter. You came home. That's all that matters."

I opened my mouth to answer, but before I could say anything, a high-pitched whine filled the air. Darrell immediately went still.

I knew that sound. A military drone. Long-range surveillance. Scanning.

He moved toward the window and pulled the curtain aside just enough to look outside. His expression changed.

"They're already here."

I slowly stood up from the couch.

"How close?"

"Ten kilometers," he said. "Maybe less."

I forced myself toward the window despite the pain in my leg and ribs. A small red light moved across the sky in the distance.

Searching. Scanning. Looking for us.

Vivian had found me. And she was coming.